Together -- Chapter 13

Disclaimer: All of the characters that appeared on the TV show Dark Angel (Max, Zack, Logan, etc.) belong to their respective owners, not to me. No money is being made off of this fic. I only own the original characters (Becky/X6-405, etc.).

“Now, why the hell are ya banging on the door at this hour?” Original Cindy muttered as she walked to the front door of her and Max’s apartment. “Figures, the one night that Original Cindy decides to go to bed at a vaguely decent hour...” She flung open the door to see Max and Becky standing there, Max with a big grin on her face. “Holy shit.”

“Didn’t want you to get too used to living without a roommate,” Max teased. She gave Original Cindy a big hug. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, boo,” Original Cindy said. She let go of Max and looked Becky up and down. “And who is this fine piece of eye candy you be bringing Original Cindy’s way?”

“This is Becky,” Max informed her friend. “She blew the joint with me.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Becky said. “I don’t swing that way, but I appreciate the compliment.”

“You’re welcome,” Original Cindy replied.

“Becky needs a place to crash until she gets her one of her own,” Max added. “Speaking of which, why are you here? It’s barely after midnight. I thought you’d still be at Crash with Sketchy and everyone.”

“Nah, I just thought that I’d actually get caught up on my sleep for once,” Original Cindy said. “Besides, even watching Sketchy make a fool out of his damn self gets old.” She shrugged. “So, you guys got any bags or anything?”

“Nah, just my pistol,” Becky told her.

Original Cindy blinked. “You actually have a gun?”

“Yeah, do you want to see it?” Becky offered, taking the gun out of her pocket. “Top of the line model. Works beautifully. Helped make sure my family got out of hell safe tonight.”

“I forgot that you’re a soldier girl, too,” Original Cindy said.

Becky nodded. “It’s okay. Max says that you’re trustworthy.”

“They’ll have to get through me before they get to her,” Original Cindy declared. “If you’re a friend of my boo, then you’re a friend of mine.”

“Thanks,” Becky said, grinning.

“So, you one of Max’s sibs?” Original Cindy asked.

Becky shook her head. “No, next generation down. Max’s generation is X5, mine’s X6.”

“Does that make you an upgrade?” Original Cindy wondered.

“Sort of,” Becky confessed. “I am, and about 10 percent of us are upgrades, but three-quarters of us can get our butts kicked by the X5s and the rest of us can hang with them. Long story and I don’t know all the details.”

“I just don’t get that whole genetic engineering dealio,” Original Cindy admitted. She shook her head. “It just flies right over Original Cindy’s head.”

Max laughed. “I think it flew over the heads of some of the people who cooked us up.”

“So, you’re younger than Max, then?” Original Cindy said.

“Yeah, by about three years,” Becky confirmed. “I think my eighteenth birthday is sometime in the fall.” She shrugged and yawned.

“I guess you can just crash on the couch, Becky,” Max said, clearing some of Original Cindy’s things off of it. “It doesn’t pull out, but it’s a lot softer than what we slept on back at Manticore.”

“It’ll be fine,” Becky assured the X5. “I’ve slept on much worse on some of the missions that I went on.”

“I’m gonna get back to bed,” Original Cindy spoke up. “You need a job, Becky?”

“I guess so,” Becky said.

“Good, you’re coming with Max and me tomorrow to Jam Pony. You’ll like it,” Original Cindy decided. “Great to meet ya, Becky. See ya’ll in the morning.” She headed back into her bedroom and shut the door.

“First night away from home,” Max quipped.

“Yeah,” Becky agreed quietly.

“Something wrong?” Max asked.

Becky sighed. “I just miss my unit—my family. I don’t know if I’m gonna see any of them again.”

“I know how you feel,” Max said sympathetically. “I miss my other brothers and sisters like crazy.”

“I can imagine,” Becky agreed. She yawned. “Damn, I wish I could just not sleep like you can.”

“You’ve had a long day. You should get some sleep,” Max suggested, standing up.

“Yes, Mommy,” Becky replied sarcastically, but she lay down on the couch. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m gonna change my clothes and then hop on my baby and then just cruise around Seattle for a bit,” Max said with a smile. “We’ll get you a bike tomorrow night. I’ll pick up some clothes for you while I’m out.”

“Gonna get those special bargains, huh?” Becky teased.

“Yep. Those five fingered discounts are only available until sunrise, after all,” Max remarked with a grin. Becky smiled back and grabbed a pillow and put it underneath her head and snuggled into the couch. She yawned and closed her eyes and thought about her family.

I wish I knew where they were and what they’re up to. I wonder if some of them are even here in Seattle right now. I just hope that they’re all okay. Heck, I hope that everybody that did make it out tonight is okay, even 224. He might be a royal prick, but I wouldn’t want to wish what happened tonight on even my worse enemy. And then there’s Unit 4 from Seattle that I worked with before when I was on my first long-term away mission and on that last mission to Russia. Did they make it out? I wish I knew. This whole thing just feels so surreal right now, like a weird dream. I feel like the second I open my eyes, I’m going to wake up back in my cell back at the facility or even back in my old cell in Gillette, ready for yet another day of training, training, and even more training. Worrying that maybe one of us will die from drowning in the tank, from a mission gone wrong, or even just from being in the wrong place at the wrong time when a trainer is in a bad mood, like 662 did. I’m sick of all that worrying. I don’t have to worry about those things anymore. This is real and Manticore’s over.

Becky opened her eyes again when she saw Max tiptoeing through the apartment towards the door. “Good night, Max.”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you up,” Max said.

“It’s okay,” Becky assured her. “I didn’t fall asleep yet.”

“All right,” Max said. “I’ll see you in the morning. Good night.”

“’Night,” Becky replied. She yawned and closed her eyes and fell asleep.

TBC